Idabelle Smith Firestone (November 10, 1874 – July 7, 1954) was an American

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Def ...

and

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...

Biography

She was born in Minnesota City, Minnesota, to Eliza B. Allen (1843–1923) and George T. Smith (1841-1921), the youngest of five children. Her father was the inventor of a

flour Flour is a powder made by grinding raw grains, roots, beans, nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many cul ...

milling process that turns out "Patent" and "Half Patent" flour. She learned to play piano and organ as a girl and studied music at

Alma College Alma College is a private liberal arts college in Alma, Michigan. It enrolls approximately 1,400 students and is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Alma College is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and offers bachelor ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. On 20 November 1895, she married

Harvey Samuel Firestone Harvey Samuel Firestone (December 20, 1868 – February 7, 1938) was an American businessman, and the founder of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company, one of the first global makers of automobile tires. Family background Firestone was born ...

, who had begun the

Firestone Tire and Rubber Company Firestone Tire and Rubber Company is a tire company founded by Harvey Firestone (1868–1938) in 1900 initially to supply solid rubber side-wire tires for fire apparatus, and later, pneumatic tires for wagons, buggies, and other forms of wheele ...

five years earlier. She was the mother of

Harvey S. Firestone, Jr. Harvey Samuel Firestone Jr. (April 20, 1898 – June 1, 1973) was an American businessman. He was chairman of the board of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company. Biography He was born on April 20, 1898, to Harvey Samuel Firestone and Idabell ...

, and Leonard Firestone, the grandmother of

Brooks Firestone Anthony Brooks Firestone (born June 18, 1939) is an American businessman and politician. The son of Leonard Firestone, a grandson of Harvey Samuel Firestone and Idabelle Smith, and a nephew of Harvey Firestone, Jr., he was educated at The We ...

, and the great-grandmother of

William Clay Ford, Jr. William Clay Ford Jr. (born May 3, 1957) is an American businessman, serving as executive chairman of Ford Motor Company. The great-grandson of company founder Henry Ford, Ford joined the board in 1988 and has served as chairman since January 19 ...

, Andrew Firestone, and

Nick Firestone Nicholas Stanley Firestone (born March 31, 1966) is an American former race car driver. A great-grandson of Harvey Samuel Firestone (founder of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company) and Idabelle Smith, grandson of Roger (1912–1970) and son ...

. She was not the only composer in the Firestone family. Her grand-daughter Elizabeth Firestone (b. 1922) composed music for the film Once More, My Darling (1949), which starred Robert Montgomery and

Ann Blyth Ann Marie Blyth (born August 16, 1928) is an American retired actress and singer. For her performance as Veda in the 1945 Michael Curtiz film ''Mildred Pierce'', Blyth was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She is one of ...

. She died in her sleep at her home, Harbel Manor, after a long illness on July 7, 1954 at age 79 in

Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city ...

Musical career

She became a member of the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (

ASCAP The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadca ...

) in 1948. Her compositions "In My Garden" and " If I Could Tell You" both were featured as theme songs for the program, "

Voice of Firestone ''The Voice of Firestone'' was a radio and television program of classical music. The show featured leading singers in selections from opera and operetta. Originally titled ''The Firestone Hour'', it was first broadcast on the NBC Radio network ...

", a radio and television program of

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" al ...

from 1928 until 1959. "In My Garden", to lyrics by Lester O'Keefe (1896–1977), was the opening and ending theme for the program in January 1938 until 1941 when licensing restrictions caused a temporary ban of its use for broadcasting due to it being ASCAP-licensed. The new theme, "If I Could Tell You" to lyrics by Madeleine Marshall (1899–1993) was introduced in early 1941. Marshall was a singing coach, concert pianist and accompanist who taught English diction at

Juilliard The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

for over half a century. The ballad was dedicated to her husband who died in 1938 and her daughter, Elizabeth, who died the following year. Many of Firestone's compositions were published and notated, including for orchestral works and multiple voices. Her work was often recorded and sung by opera singers of the time, including Richard Crooks, Lawrence Tibbet,

Eleanor Steber Eleanor Steber (July 17, 1914October 3, 1990) was an American operatic soprano. Steber is noted as one of the first major opera stars to have achieved the highest success with training and a career based in the United States. Biography Eleanor ...

Robert Merrill Robert Merrill (June 4, 1917 – October 23, 2004) was an American operatic baritone and actor, who was also active in the musical theatre circuit. He received the National Medal of Arts in 1993. Early life Merrill was born Moishe Miller, ...

Joan Sutherland Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, (7 November 1926 – 10 October 2010) was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano known for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s. She possesse ...

Renata Tebaldi Renata Tebaldi ( , ; 1 February 1922 – 19 December 2004) was an Italian lirico-spinto soprano popular in the post- war period, and especially prominent as one of the stars of La Scala, San Carlo and, especially, the Metropolitan Opera. ...

, and

Richard Tucker Richard Tucker (August 28, 1913January 8, 1975) was an American operatic tenor and cantor. Long associated with the Metropolitan Opera, Tucker's career was primarily centered in the United States. Early life Tucker was born Rivn (Rubin) Ticke ...

. Her eldest son,

(1898 - 1973) was responsible for managing much of Firestone's later career, especially in regard to copyright issues and dealings with collaborators.

Legacy

On 10 November 1973, through the support of the Harvey S. Firestone, Jr. foundation, the Idabelle Firestone Audio Library was built at 290 Huntington Avenue, to house the ''Voice of Firestone'' collection and to provide listening and viewing facilities for the New England Conservatory's students. The Idabelle Firestone School of Nursing at Akron City Hospital opened in 1 October 1929, built through Firestone philanthropy to educate women and provide quality, accessible healthcare for all. The school was demolished on 31 July 2020. After her death, her sons made a sizeable donation to the church for the building of the Idabelle Firestone Memorial Chapel. The organ from Harbel Manor was redesigned and installed in the chapel. The new chapel was consecrated in April, 1958. Harbel Manor was torn down after Idabelle Firestone died, and the remaining property was sold.

Works

* ''If I could tell you'', for voice and piano (1940) Text: Madeleine Marshall * ''In my garden'', for voice and piano (1933) Text: Lester O'Keefe * ''You are the song in my heart'', for voice and piano (1938) Text: Margaret Speaks * ''Bluebirds'', for voice and piano (1941) * ''Melody of love'', for voice and piano (1945) Text: Madeleine Marshall * ''Do you recall?'', for voice and piano (1948) Text: Margaret Bristol

References

External links

Obituary Article on Firestone news. (Gastonia, N.C.) 1952-197?, July 25, 1954
{{DEFAULTSORT:Firestone, Idabelle 1874 births 1954 deaths Firestone family Musicians from Michigan People from Jackson, Michigan American women composers 20th-century American composers People from Winona County, Minnesota Musicians from Minnesota 20th-century American women musicians 20th-century women composers